Method of controlling phase relationships in an electronic circuit



H, J HASE LATIONSHIPS NIC CIRCUIT Och, 19,1948. c. N

7 METHOD 0 ONI'ROLLIN AN ELECTRO Filed July F/G-L F/G. Z.

. kamzz BY 9 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 19, 1948 .l. 4.:

"-W-YM'ETHODWOF- CONTROLLINGPHASERELA: TIONSHIPS INAN ELEo'moNIocmc I'ri CleveOuNash,Jr., Tulsa, Olda assignor to sumaard Oil Development Company, a corporation of Delaware ,,The;present invention is directed to 'aacmethod for adjusting the gain of an: eamplifieruwithout changing the phase relationships of the; amplifier and has particular referenceltolthe amplification or; electrical impulses derived from seismic waves inseismic prospecting. 1. .11

In seismic prospecting the waves generated by a seismic disturbance are received at selected points and converted into electrical impulses which are amplified and recorded. It has been found that with certain types of amplifiers the desired degree of amplification is attained only at the expense of a change in phase between the amplified signal and the signal itself. This is particularly true of amplifiers in which the degree of amplification is a function of the voltage on one or mor elements of a vacuum tube and in which it is desired to change the degree of am- .plification automatically as a function of the intensity of the signal introduced into the amplifier.

The present invention is based on the discovery that in a vacuum tube amplifier having a plurality of grids, it is possible to adjust the phase relationship between the output and the input of the amplifier by adjusting the ratio of biasing voltages applied to two or more grids. Once the proper ratio of these biasing voltages is determined for the desired phase relationship, the degree of amplification can then be varied by varying the biasing voltages while maintaining said ratio.

The present invention will be better understood from the following detailed description of the accompanying drawing, in which;

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view of one embodiment of the present invention as applied to seismic prospecting; and,

Fig. 2 is a schematic view of an amplifier circuit accordin to the present invention.

Referring to Fig. 1 in detail, numeral l designates a geophone or a pickup which is a device for receiving earth vibrations and converting them into electrical impulses. These impulses are delivered by conductors, 2, to an amplifier 3, which in turn delivers to a recording galvanometer 4 a main signal and to recording galvanometer 5 an auxiliary signal. While the apparatus is shown in connection with only one geophone, it Will be understood that in practice a number of geophones are employed, and each geophone can be connected to a separate amplifier or any desired number of geophones can be connected to a single amplifier for the production of a composite wave or signal.

The type of amplifier indicated by box 3 may Applicatio'n liilyai, 194 2, SerialNot452,169 admin (ohm- 171) p y Solong as it embodies the underlying ciplesofthe present invention. In1Fig.2 is-shown one useful embodiment. The signalfrom the: geophonedsdelivered to-theprim-ary 6 of a transformer; the secondary l: of which is connected across, a. resistance 8 The voltage across therresistance 8 is applied tothe grid 9 of the vacuum tube amplifier. This grid 9 is supplied with a negative biasing voltage derived from the voltage drop across the resistance l0 connected to a battery I I, negative to the cathode, or an equivalent source of potential. Also connected to battery H is a second grid l2 which is also negative. The battery I I is provided with a pointer I3 which permits the adjustment of the voltage applied to the grids 9 and I2. The ratio of these respective biasing voltages is adjustedby the movement oi. a pointer I4 which is mounted for movement along resistance l0. By adjusting the position of pointer l4 while comparing the phase relationship of the output and input, it is possible to so proportion the biasing voltages that the output and input (measured across the tube or at the output terminals l8 and I9 and the input of the transformer) will be maintained in a constant phase relation as the point I3 is manipulated to secure the desired degre of amplification.

Arranged in the tube is cathode I5 which is connected to an output terminal, IS. A plate [1 is also connected to an output terminal l8 as well as to the cathode through resistances l9 and 20 and to a battery 2|, for supplying the plate voltage. Connected in the plate cathode circuit are condensers and resistors so arranged as to form a filter indicated by the rectangle 22 in dotted lines.

Arranged in the vacuum tube is an auxiliary I grid 23 which is also connected to battery 2| and is, therefore, positive relative to the cathode and is connected to the plate circuit behind the resistance l9 and is also connected to a terminal 24. The signal which is obtained between terminals I 6 and 24 decreases in amplitude as the signal obtained from terminals 16 and I8 increases in amplitude by virtue of adjustment of the position of pointer l3 on the voltage source II. The production of two signals in this particular type of work is advantageous because it is frequently desirable, as pointed out heretofore, to control the amplification automatically so as to hold the amplification at a low level when the exciting signal is large, and vice versa, and the second signal obtained across the terminals l6 and 24 can be rectified to produce a biasing voltage which may be used instead Of battery ll as the control voltage or the degree of amplification.

The nature and objects of the present invention having been thus described and illustrated, What is claimed as new and useful and is desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A method for maintaining a constant phase relationship in an amplifier comprising a multigrid vacuum tube having at least a cathode, an anode, a control grid and a suppressor grid, and having an R. C. filter in the anode circuit of'the said tube which consists of applying negative biasing voltages to the said control and suppressor grids, and adjusting the ratio of the biasing voltage on one of the said grids to that on the second of the grids -until amplification may be varied by changing the value but not the ratio of the said biasing voltages without changing thephase relationship across the amplifier.

2. A method for maintaining a constant phase relationship in an amplifier tube, said tube having at least a cathode, an anode, a control grid, and a suppressor grid, comprising the steps of applying negative biasing voltages to the said control and suppressor grids and adjusting the 4 ratio of the negative biasing voltages on the two grids until amplification may be varied by changing the value but not the ratio of the said biasing without changing the phase relationship between the anode and cathode of the said ampliiying tube. 1

r CLEVE-C; NASH, JR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,756,893 Warner Apr. 29, 1930 1,997,665 Wheeler Apr. 16, 1935 2,109,760 Urtel Mar. 1, 1938 2,231,955 Schrader Feb. 18, 1941 2,237,420 Ferris Apr. 8, 1941 2,241,581 Boucke May 13,1941 2,250,559 Weber July 29, 1941 2,254,243 Ripley Sept. 2, 1941 2,273,107 Herold Feb. 17, 1942 2,302,866 Hunt, Nov. 24, 1942 2,303,357 Hoover, Jr. Dec. 1, 1942 

